Manhattan, New York (July 19, 2000)

Thank you all for coming!

Today is July 19, 2000. One year ago on this day at midnight, after harassing, watching, and following Falun Gong practitioners in China for months, the Chinese government arrested them at their homes in more than 30 cities and provinces and began a yearlong persecution of Falun Gong. On July 22, 1999, the government accused Falun Gong of being an "illegal organization"; in October 1999, it was labeled as an "evil cult". The government has used their controlled national machine and the media spreading rumors and making false allegations and accusations against Falun Gong and its founder both nationally and worldwide. With every possible social, economical and political means, they tried to force more than a hundred million Chinese Falun Gong practitioners to abandon their faith -- "Truthfulness, Benevolence and Forbearance."

Some Falun Gong practitioners were fired, expelled from schools, kept in police custody illegally, sent to labor camps without a trial and sent to jail. Others were forced into psychiatric hospitals, treated as psychiatric patients and injected with narcotics. Property, such as land, was confiscated and heavy fines were imposed on some practitioners. All due to practitioners' firm belief in "Truthfulness, Benevolence and Forbearance."

Tens of thousands of good and honest people have been exercising their basic rights endowed by the Constitution and have been peacefully appealing to the authorities. Based on their trust with the government, they appealed to the government at various levels. They have been trying to tell the government that Falun Gong has guided people to improve their mind nature and achieve physical and spiritual well-being. It is good for society and the nation. Surprisingly though, practitioners' peaceful appeals were misunderstood by the authorities, and they were suppressed by the government. People who appealed have been beaten, detained and arrested; even completely stripped of their basic human rights for life. This kind of persecution has become more severe. The wave of persecution has spread to every corner of the country, to big and small cities, and even to the countryside. The number of those persecuted is over a hundred million, including the practitioners' families. This is the most severe violation of human rights by the Chinese government since the "Cultural Revolution". Until now, with incomplete statistics, there have been more than twenty innocent people that died in the government's custody. About forty thousand people have been arrested, five thousand have been sent to labor camps and more than a hundred have been imprisoned.

What exactly is Falun Gong then? What kind of people are Falun Gong practitioners? Falun Gong, or Falun Dafa, is a high level body and mind cultivation practice of the Buddha school. It follows the characteristics of the universe "Truthfulness, Benevolence and Forbearance." Through assimilating with these characteristics, the practitioners will achieve a high moral standard, healthy physical body, and finally return to their original true self. Since it was first taught in public in May 1992, in just a short period of eight years, Falun Gong has been spread around the world in more than forty countries and regions. People from different ethnic backgrounds, different races, and different ages are now practicing Falun Gong. The way it has been spread is by word of mouth, particularly so in China. People tell friends and family, because they all feel good after they have learned it. Without media involvement, it was spread like an undercurrent. Falun Dafa's classes, seminars and activities are free and open to the public. All participants are volunteers.

The true practitioners cultivate themselves according to the strict mind nature requirements of Falun Dafa. Cultivation and practice is not for health and fitness, nor is it for exhibiting supernormal powers or for self-interests, but for true cultivation and improvement of the kind mind nature. This is why so many practitioners, when facing the government's vicious allegations and persecutions, still keep their faith and have shown great benevolence and endurance.

Gu Zhiyi, a woman over sixty years old, arrested on July 19, 1999. Because of persevering practice and cultivation, she went through twenty four kinds of brutal tortures, including the "Tiger Chair" piercing the finger tips with bamboo skewers, electrical shocks, etc. When being asked whether she would continue practicing, she always said "yes."

Zhao Jinhua, an ordinary village woman, was arrested in the field while working. She was beaten many times. The injuries and bruises were all over her body. At the police station, she was tortured with police batons and rubber clubs, and received electrical shocks from an old telephone wire. She always answered, "yes" when being asked whether she would continue practicing, even at the last moment of her life.

Chen Zixiu, as reported by the Wall Street Journal, was a fifty-six year old female practitioner who was arrested on the street. Within three days she was beaten to death. People have to ask what crimes have all these people committed? Are they a threat to the national security or do they have any political motivation?

Zhou Zhichang, was well-known locally as a good man, and called by his boss, "a person who could do ten people's work." He was an upright and unselfish person. Because of going to Beijing and appealing to the authorities, he was tortured to death and his whole body was full of wounds and bruises. His family was told that he had died of a heart attack. All the local people were very surprised as why such a good person was tortured to death in this way?

A young man, who donated over a hundred thousand Yuan (Chinese currency unit) for the development of Northwestern regions of China, exercised his legal right to appeal. He was arrested and endured inhumane treatment. A woman practitioner from Jilin Province traveled a thousand kilometers to Beijing on foot for days in the cold weather in December. She begged for food on the way, and just wanted to say to the government "Falun Dafa is good." There are many more stories, these are just the tip of the iceberg.

For a year, the Chinese government's persecution of Falun Gong, and the brutal means used in the persecution have been condemned by the governments of many countries. Last November, the United States Congress and Senate passed resolutions condemning the persecution. The United States submitted a resolution on the Chinese human right status to the UN. The European Parliament passed a resolution condemning the Chinese government for its brutal behavior towards Falun Gong practitioners. Other countries including Canada and Australia, and other international organizations including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Freedom House have raised human rights concerns. Many people, Chinese and Westerners, who have learned the truth about Falun Gong, are indignant at the Chinese government. Here, we would like to express our appreciation to everyone for your support. We welcome the support to Falun Gong from all people no matter of race, ethnic background, nationality, political views or religions, for it is from the kindness of your hearts.

At the same time, we ask for the kind nature and justice, especially China's century-old kind nature and justice from more people to be awakened, to help us to stop the on-going inhuman treatment towards Falun Gong practitioners. It is not only the sympathizing and the help for these innocent practitioners, but also an act against injustices, inhumanity, violation of human kind nature, and violation of our ancient Chinese traditions and culture. This is everyone's right to choose between righteousness and evil. We hope that the Chinese government will soon realize what they are doing is a sin, stop harming themselves and others, stop these horrific crimes, release all Falun Gong practitioners and return innocence to Falun Gong.